It always amazes me that people would even bother to send things like socks and underwear. Cash money travels well, folds neatly in your pocket, can be traded for socks, underwear, fresh water, cold cuts, bread, gasoline, chainsaws or backhoes, depending on your immediate needs. Through the power of the Interwebs I've already enabled some cash to be used in just these ways, and I didn't even have to drive to Oklahoma to do it.

Next thing you know, people will start getting coffee cake, seven-layer dip and cornbread muffins in the mail. "Hurr! I made this just fer yew!"

I live about 10 minutes from Newtown, CT. After the unpleasantness happened, wellwishers sent thousands, nay tens of thousands of teddy bears and other stuffed animals. While their kindness is appreciated the town has had to devote quite a few man hours to storing and eventually getting rid of said gifts. If you really feel the need to help out in some way, search for a reputable charity's website and donate cash.

Seriously though, it isn't like there's widespread, massive damage all over the Oklahoma City area and supplies and fresh water are super-scarce. It's localized to the 1.4 mile-wide tornado path. So it's not difficult to send someone to go buy a few hundred dollars' worth of stuff at the next Walmart to the north. And that will be much more efficient then sending stuff.

[laughingsquid.com image 429x566]Well, it would make a change from noodles.

(takes a second to think AFTER pressing posting button) Okay, I just posted the most inappropriate and tasteless thing possible in a tragedy-related thread, didn't I? Excuse me while I head off and shoot myself.

wxboy:Seriously though, it isn't like there's widespread, massive damage all over the Oklahoma City area and supplies and fresh water are super-scarce. It's localized to the 1.4 mile-wide tornado path. So it's not difficult to send someone to go buy a few hundred dollars' worth of stuff at the next Walmart to the north. And that will be much more efficient then sending stuff.

Yeah, I'm all for charity of any kind... but living through two hurricanes, the National Guard and Red Cross seemed to have all the supplies/food/water/ice/etc. everyone needed. And, to your point, those were hurricanes which affected an entire large city.

Although no one lost their entire house, so maybe I'm comparing apples to oranges.

The way we do charity traditionally done in this country has way too much leakage. Couldn't there be a company or a website that reviews individual hard-luck stories to see if they're legit, then lets individual donors shop around for people they want to give to? Maybe like Kickstarter, expect instead of people begging for funding for a project, they're just begging.

Or could it be structured through the tax code? Instead of giving money to the government, who give it (with alot of transaction costs) to old/sick/poor people, could a billionaire do something where they've proven they've provided the support or healthcare the government would have given, cheaper than their taxes would've been but more bang-per-buck than the government could provide.

Hell, it costs $24-$48k a year to incarcerate a prisoner. For a $12,000 a year tax break, I can keep her locked up in my basement.

How about a tornado safe house first, or the concrete, block and rebar to build some now. If not for the residents, at least for the post-disaster helpers to be safe. And maybe re-purpose shipping containers, as excellent premade shelters, underground. I'm sure there are shipping containers somewhere that are going to waste.

There is no guarantee that another tornado won't hit next week, since Moore has attracted three in the last decade. Oh, and change your name to Lesse or Fewere.

Although I'm not all that experienced with moving funds or donations to benefit the donors, such as any Republican charity CEO, I am sure all the physical donations provided to our cause, would help those in need. Unlike the charity CEOs.

Sad our inherent distrust of man causes us to not want to send cash. Sad that we have to inherently distrust man. Sad that we have evidence of organizations not getting the cash we do send to the people we intend to help.

The problem is that cash is fungible and I don't have time/resources to pick out a reputable charity.The Red Cross and many of the other high profile organizations are a mess. If you want my help you are going to have to give me some options.

Right, because it's so much more effective to spend that money on sorting, storing, and disposing of mountains of useless shiat.

If you're that damned suspicious, simply send nothing, instead of sending something that wastes time and money.

Clean socks and underwear is useless? If they've lost everything, clean clothes should be welcome. If nothing else I want clean clothes that don't smell like the bum I usually sneer disdainfully at while I sip on my peppermint mocha.

Serious question... do you have above ground graves (well I guess they wouldn't be called graves) like we do down here in NOLA?

Tombs, crypts and museulems.

No. Not a big thing around here. NOLA has those because of the water table being so high. Red clay is just a biatch to dig though and if water does get down there is swells and can break concrete. That's why we don't have basements around here. We have good top soil it just isn't very think. That's why the dust bowl was so bad.

Serious question... do you have above ground graves (well I guess they wouldn't be called graves) like we do down here in NOLA?

Tombs, crypts and museulems.

No. Not a big thing around here. NOLA has those because of the water table being so high. Red clay is just a biatch to dig though and if water does get down there is swells and can break concrete. That's why we don't have basements around here. We have good top soil it just isn't very think. That's why the dust bowl was so bad.

All good, gotcha. I actually like not having a basement. When I lived in the Chicago 'burbs I had one (like everyone else). One small problem with your sump pump, and all hell breaks lose during a minor rain storm.

BitwiseShift:How about a tornado safe house first, or the concrete, block and rebar to build some now. If not for the residents, at least for the post-disaster helpers to be safe. And maybe re-purpose shipping containers, as excellent premade shelters, underground. I'm sure there are shipping containers somewhere that are going to waste.

[media.treehugger.com image 468x326]

There is no guarantee that another tornado won't hit next week, since Moore has attracted three in the last decade. Oh, and change your name to Lesse or Fewere.

I used to work at Mobil Mini, they have tons of them sitting around rotting.

TheAbstractor:The way we do charity traditionally done in this country has way too much leakage. Couldn't there be a company or a website that reviews individual hard-luck stories to see if they're legit, then lets individual donors shop around for people they want to give to? Maybe like Kickstarter, expect instead of people begging for funding for a project, they're just begging.

Or could it be structured through the tax code? Instead of giving money to the government, who give it (with alot of transaction costs) to old/sick/poor people, could a billionaire do something where they've proven they've provided the support or healthcare the government would have given, cheaper than their taxes would've been but more bang-per-buck than the government could provide.

Hell, it costs $24-$48k a year to incarcerate a prisoner. For a $12,000 a year tax break, I can keep her locked up in my basement.